


Tender

by ravenhowlett



Series: Home Sweet Home [6]
Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: 7 year gap, Birthday Party, Family Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Full Moon, Introspection, Kid Fic, Light Angst, Post-Cell Games Saga, Slice of Life, Swimming, chichi is a good mom, mentions of dead character, yamcha being a tool
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-28 01:57:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19802374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ravenhowlett/pseuds/ravenhowlett
Summary: This week on Dragon Ball Z! It's Goten's first birthday! Chichi wants it to be a special day for her special boy. Everyone's invited but who will show up?





	Tender

**Author's Note:**

> I really wanted this to go up like a month ago but I took my time writing instead and I'm actually quite pleased with how it turned out.
> 
> All errors are my own.

Life was… simpler now, as much as Chichi didn’t want to admit it. A year and a half had passed since Goku’s death and life had become bearable again. Chichi no longer felt like her chest would burst with the pain of her heartache when she went to bed alone every night. She was able to acknowledge her grief whenever it hit her and work through it in a productive way. Even Gohan was making progress since his meltdown last year, especially since Goten’s birth. He’d taken to becoming a big brother about as well as Chichi expected him to. He loved him and played with him all the time, but he also got annoyed if Goten touched his stuff or threw a tantrum over nothing. Chichi always reminded him that to a one year old every experience was a new one so there was no such thing as small or inconsequential reasons to cry.

Today Goten was upset because Gohan was brushing his hair instead of Chichi. “Sit still, Goten,” Gohan pleaded with him. “I’m almost done, there’s no reason to freak out.” Goten was currently blocking his brother’s hand from going hear his head with the hairbrush. “Mom, what’s the point of brushing his hair now if he’s just going to go down for a nap in an hour and mess it all up? Why not brush it when he wakes up?”

“Because your grandfather is coming over soon and I want him to see you both looking at least a little presentable before the party.” Chichi was trying to decide between two separate outfits that were laid out on the bed. “Remember that he’s older so he’s not planning on staying very long.”

“Well he’s not letting me brush it. Maybe we should just cancel the whole party and put him back in his crib the whole day since he’s acting like such a baby.” Gohan directed his chiding tone to his brother, playfully poking his soft belly a few times to punctuate his point. If only Goten could actually understand him. “C’mon, buddy, just let me do this.”

“Goten!” Chichi said suddenly in the sharp tone meant only for misbehaving boys. She pointed at him as she said “Listen to your brother!” He shook his head and continued to push his brother’s hand away. “Fine. No cake! No cake for Goten! Me and Gohan are gonna eat all your cake and you’re not gonna have any. Is that what you want?”

“My cake!” He stood up and tried to climb into Chichi’s arms but she pushed him back down onto the bed. “My cake, Mama!”

“Then listen to your brother.” She pinched his nose playfully before going back to her outfits. “I want at least one picture of the two of you today so try to stay clean please.”

“Yes, mom.” Gohan agreed. Finally Goten allowed his brother to finish brushing his hair. He looked rather handsome with his silly cowlick neatly gelled and brushed down. “Come on, let’s let Mom get dressed in privacy and I’ll get you some juice.” He picked his brother up and flopped him over his shoulder before jumping down the hallway, shaking and jostling Goten and forcing high pitched giggles out of him the whole way to the kitchen.

Chichi could hear the activity in the kitchen as it happened, the fridge opening and closing, a chair being pulled out and sat on, the soft creak of weight setting gently onto the table. Goten’s little baby voice babbling nonsense, a real word thrown in here and there. She couldn’t believe he was a year old already. Her sweet baby boy, she swore she’d just given birth to him recently. And now he was running around and learning to speak and trying to climb things! He was already so outgoing and boisterous and energetic. And now he was a whole year old on top of it all. Oh, where had all the time gone? Couldn’t he just stay as her little boy forever? She’d already missed out on so many moments with Gohan as it was. If Chichi had her way, Goten would never know the life Gohan lived before his birth. He’s going to be safe, damnit! He’ll be a little boy and he’ll play and have fun and go to school and he’ll live the normal life that his brother didn’t get.

When Chichi came to the kitchen to see what her boys were up to she had to stop and watch them for a moment. They weren’t doing anything other than sitting and sharing a glass of juice but it was the picture they made. Gohan would cup his brother’s chin as he held the glass for him to help him drink, careful not to let him spill or dribble any onto his nice shirt.

“Grandpa’s on his way,” Gohan said suddenly. He smiled back at his mom and she crossed her arms. “He should be here any moment now.”

“Get ready for a spectacle. You know how much he loves spoiling you boys.” She headed for the front door so she could greet her father once he arrived. Gohan could tell that he was less than a minute away by now.

“Come on, let’s go say ‘Hi’ to Grandpa, Goten.” Gohan lifted his brother over his head and sat him on his shoulders and held on tight to his ankles. “Don’t pull my hair, alright?”

* * *

The party went off without a hitch. All their friends started showing up around early afternoon, including Yamcha and Tien, either of which hadn’t been heard from in a while. It was lovely to see everyone. Krillin had been a bit shy when he arrived, Android 18 in tow, her hand held tightly in his, and twin nervous scowls on their faces. It was obvious she felt uncomfortable being around all the people she’d been ordered to kill only a year and a half ago. Of course no one held it against her. It was a directive that she’d never carried out. As far as Chichi thought, 18 was one of them now. Master Roshi and Oolong were inside helping themselves to a sandwich platter, while Gohan was in his room showing Chiaotzu and Puar the newest action figure that his grandfather had just brought him. Even Piccolo and Dende showed up eventually. Chichi felt her heart do a little flip when she watched Gohan hug Piccolo tightly, he didn’t quite hug back but he did at least pat his hair a little.

Bulma was last to arrive, always preferring to be fashionably late. She set Trunks down and told him to go and find Goten and immediately he ran off, kicking his little velcro shoes in two different directions before he entered the house. “Sorry, I tried to leave sooner but that little bastard is a lot of work,” she huffed as she pulled a can of soda from a cooler and sat down next to 18 at the picnic bench.

“You shouldn’t talk about Vegeta that way,” 18 said into her soda. Chichi and Bulma laughed raucously, snorting into their drinks and causing Yamcha to glance their way with a perplexed expression.

“So how is ‘The Prince of All Saiyans’ anyway?” Chichi asked. Jeeze, the man couldn’t take even one afternoon off from training to spend with his family and friends?

Bulma rolled her eyes. “He totally wouldn’t want me telling you this… He said the house would be too quiet without me and Trunks today. He totally loves us. It’s sickening.”

“Does he know he was invited?” Chichi asked. It was definitely Bulma’s style to not relay invitations to others however she saw fit.

“He does, but why would he ever submit himself to the mortifying ordeal of being known when he could just… not do that instead? He’d rather seclude himself at home like a wild animal in a dark cave than interact with everyone else. Especially Yamcha. To be completely honest I just didn’t feel like subjecting you all to his everlasting foul mood today. Birthday parties are not his scene so really you should be thanking me.”

“You wanna bring him a slice of cake?” Chichi asked. Bulma nodded. “Speaking of cake, I’d better go and find the birthday boy. I can’t imagine what kind of trouble he and Trunks are getting into with no one but a bunch of guys with no experience in childcare watching them. I’ll be right back.”

Once Chichi left Bulma immediately turned her sights onto 18. She watched her as she sipped her soda until she finally looked up at her. “What are you staring at?”

“So how’s it going with Krillin?” Bulma’s smile was innocent but her tone alluded otherwise. “You guys have been together a few months now right? It’s gotta be new and fun still right?”

“I am not discussing my personal life with you.” 18 sounded serious but Bulma knew that was just how she spoke.

“Ugh fine.” Bulma flipped her hair over her shoulder and crossed her arms. “I’ve known Krillin since he was a kid, you know. He wasn’t always so sweet and shy.”

18 smiled coyly. Krillin had told her all about his childhood when they were first getting to know each other. He’d barely even blushed when he mentioned bringing Master Roshi a backpack full of porno magazines to convince him to teach him martial arts when he was just thirteen. He told her all about his adventures with his friends, his innocent rivalry with Goku when they’d first met, how he’d died twice and suffered with nightmares of each death for years now. “I’m sure there isn’t much I don’t already know about him.” She looked up at Bulma and held her gaze for a moment. She wasn’t going to say it but she was letting Bulma know a shred of her personal life. With just one look Bulma knew they’d had sex already.

Before she could drill 18 with invasive questions Chichi appeared again. She was carrying Goten who was dressed in his brand new corduroy overalls and a colorful party hat. Trunks followed along just behind them wearing a party hat of his own and eating pretzels that one of the men no doubt crammed into all of his pockets. Both boys already had something orange and sticky on their faces. She set him down and patted his bottom telling him to go play with Trunks but to stay where the adults could still see them. When she returned to the picnic table 18 was the first to speak.

“He looks like Goku,” she said flatly. Yamcha and Tien cringed while Krillin leaned close and said “Um 18, maybe don’t say that.”

“Why-”

“And how would you know that anyway?” Yamcha piped up. 18 crossed her arms over her chest while Bulma rolled her eyes and muttered a quick “Here we go” under her breath. “It’s not like you ever got the chance to meet him back when you and your little twin showed up to wreck our lives.”

“Hey!” Krillin and Bulma shouted in unison but before either of them could continue 18 held her hand up.

“I showed up before you did, Chichi gave me a tour of the house.” She neglected to bring up the time she’d ransacked Chichi’s entire closet for a suitable outfit back when she and her brother were on the loose. She’d spent more than a few minutes just staring at the framed photo of Goku and Chichi holding a newborn Gohan that was mounted on a wall in their bedroom. She’d wondered about the lives they lived, the lives she and her brother and Android 16 were about to uproot and destroy just because of a directive. She’d never properly met Goku but from the photos around the house and the many stories from Krillin, she could guess that he must have been a pretty good husband, father, and friend. “And I don’t appreciate having my past brought up as a way to shut me up for stating the obvious. Especially not by someone whose introduction into this group was robbing it blind and actually beating up Goku.” 18 turned away from Yamcha and watched as Goten and Trunks chased Gohan around the yard, both desperately trying to climb up his legs to take his new action figure from him. They were cute kids.

After a moment of tense and uncomfortable silence passed Chichi finally spoke up. “Almost everyone here has done things we’re not exactly proud of which means none of us are in a place to judge, Yamcha. 18 is right, she was only stating the obvious. Goten does look just like Goku, in fact he’s his spitting image. And 18 is the only person in this whole group aside from Bulma who’s dared to point it out while the rest of you look the other way at any mention of Goku.” Now Yamcha looked really uncomfortable. “I see that face everyday and everyday I get reminded not just of what I’ve lost but also of what I’ve gained. So I’d really like it if all of you could stop looking at Goten as some pitiful heat-of-the-moment conquest that got left behind when what you should be seeing is an adorable little boy with an actual personality that’s not hinged on bloodlust or emotional constipation.”

“Yeah!” Bulma chimed in. “If anyone here is the result of heat-of-the-moment impulses it’s Trunks.” Leave it to Bulma to be completely inappropriate to defuse a tense conversation. “But really Yamcha, read the room!”

“Krillin showed me an old photo of him and Goku the old man took of them as kids,” 18 added. “It’s strange to see his son now looking just like the picture. It makes me feel almost nostalgic for a friendship I never had with a man I never knew. It’s sort of voyeuristic.”

Chichi nodded enthusiastically. “That’s what no one else gets. They all had Goku since he was a kid, they all got to watch him grow up! I only met him the one time when we were twelve. I waited all those years wondering if I’d ever see the strange little boy with a dorky cowlick and a tail again and it took years. Meeting again as adults, I felt… robbed. Of that friendship with him. When we got married I felt like there were vital pieces of him that I was missing. I was looking from the outside in and I only had some of the information. I felt like an interloper.” Chichi was quiet for a moment, letting her words settle with her friends so they could understand where she was coming from. She’d only ever voiced these concerns to Bulma before. Knowing that Bulma was Goku’s oldest and closest friend had helped some. She could shed light on everything Chichi missed out on.

“Now that I have Gohan and Goten,” her voice was softer now but it still had her usual defiant quality to it, “I’ve realized that I have something none of you will ever have. You all got his childhood friendship and camaraderie and unending loyalty.” But I got his heart, she thought to herself. “But I got to make him a husband and father, I got to start a family with him and witness all his tender moments. Yes, those are all things that Goten will never get to experience firsthand from his own father, but they’re things I can share with him because they’re things only I got to have.”

“That was really beautiful Chichi,” Krillin said tearfully. 18 squeezed his hand under the table and he squeezed hers back.

“Well if you’re done making all your guests cry, Chichi,” Bulma said playfully as she wiped a few stray tears from her eyes and Chichi now noticed the only dry eyes were her own, 18’s, and the kids, “I’d say it’s time to cut the cake.”

“Cake?” Suddenly Goten and Trunks popped their little heads up near the picnic table, startling everyone into laughter. “My cake, Mama?”

After Happy Birthday was sung and cake was cut and presents were opened and two rowdy toddlers went down for naps the party started to wind down. Everyone moved inside to the living room to share drinks and reminisce about the good old days and fill each other in on current events. Yamcha’s baseball career was thriving, Tien was thinking of opening a dojo, Master Roshi was still just as perverted as ever, Launch, the only member of their little ragtag group who hadn’t responded to the birthday invite, was still up to her old tricks according to Tien. He was the last to see or hear from her and it had been almost eight years now.

Little by little everyone had left and by the time late evening rolled around only Bulma and Trunks were still around. What leftovers Chichi didn’t feel like putting away she’d sent with Krillin and 18. The kitchen was clean and lights were low and their boys were energized again, fortified by the promise of one cookie and a cup of juice before the day was over. Gohan was huddled in the corner of the sofa playing with his brand new Gameboy gifted to him from Yamcha. Everyone seemed to have the same idea, for every gift brought for Goten there was an additional gift brought for Gohan too. Chichi didn’t know what to say about that but she was grateful for the love her friends had for both her boys, even if one of those boys was currently pounding his sippy cup against the remnants of Trunks’ cookie on the coffee table.

“Today was a win, Chichi. Any day someone makes Yamcha cry is a win in my book, actually!” She laughed like she knew that was terrible and flung Trunks’ sleeping body over her shoulder. “We’re gonna get going. I’ll call you tomorrow, we’ll set up a time for these two terrors to play at the park this week.”

Now Bulma was gone and it was just Chichi and her boys. It was well past bedtime but somehow Goten managed to outlast his brother. She laid him in his crib hoping he would crash as soon as his head hit his pillow like Gohan had but instead he seemed to have the same restless energy that Chichi had right now. He kept sitting up and staring at her every time she tried to walk away. After the fourth time of coaxing him to lie down and watching him doze only for him to sit back up and call out for her when she began to walk away she relented. It was still his birthday after all, so spoiling him was justified. She lifted him from his crib and brought him to her bed. He crawled under the duvet and patted the pillow eager for her to come to bed. When she finally did he still wouldn’t lie down. For the millionth time since his birth Chichi wondered what Goten was thinking.

“It’s time to sleep now.” Chichi gently tugged at his onsie until he laid his head on her shoulder. He tried to pull her nightgown down but she held his hands still. Weaning him off of breastfeeding was taking longer than it did for Gohan. After a few minutes of silence Chichi turned onto her side and pulled Goten tight to her chest. She knew he was still awake but he seemed rather content enough to be still and quiet. She stroked his wild hair, attempting to tame his persistent cowlick, and traced her fingers down his back. It was only a matter of time before sleep won over them both.

* * *

The next morning Chichi awoke to Goten’s sweaty little baby body sprawled across the very center of the bed, his feet digging into her ribs and effectively kicking her out of her own bed. She poked and prodded at his diaper to see if he was wet but surprisingly he managed to stay dry the whole night, even despite the fan above the bed being on full blast all night. Chichi carefully tucked the blanket back over Goten before getting up to start the day. She’d let her boys sleep in a little while she made breakfast.

Once breakfast was eaten and chores were completed Chichi had an idea. “What do you boys say we go down to the lake and have a little swim? It would do us good on such a hot day. We’ll have a picnic right by the water, sound good?” The boys enthusiastically agreed, Gohan abandoning his worksheet and running toward his room in a flash, exclaiming “I’ll go get my swimsuit!”

Chichi went to work packing a basket full of sandwiches and snacks, occasionally passing Goten an apple slice whenever he reached for the counter. When she was finished she took him to the room to put on sunscreen and some lightweight clothes and sandals. When they arrived at the lake the first thing Gohan did was climb the nearest tree and dive straight into the water. He made quite the splash, drenching Chichi and narrowly missing the picnic basket by inches. Goten clung to her leg from behind, not wanting to be splashed until he was properly in the water. When Chichi bent to help him take off his sandals he took that as a cue to immediately strip off all of his clothes, diaper included and promptly jump into the water.

“You’ve got a naked boy doggy paddling right for you Gohan.” She smiled as she watched Goten wade through the shallow water. It reminded her of Goku. He always preferred to swim in the nude, much to Chichi’s bashful delight. She sighed happily watching her boys play and splash and shout. Moments like this were becoming plenty again as her family continued to heal. For some time now Chichi had been realizing that life was actually worth living again. In fact her life felt full despite not having Goku by her side anymore. Of course she still missed him dearly. Her heart still hurt some nights when the loneliness invaded. But then she thought of the life they’d built together, the family she was able to cultivate since his death, the connections she kept with their friends, the son she gave birth to without him. They were okay. Gohan still had rough days here and there without his father but he was pulling through. He was learning how to heal from the hurt just as she was.

And Goten. He never knew any life other than what he had now. Being only a year old there were a lot of things he was unaware of. He’d never be kidnapped by an evil uncle, or fight Frieza on another planet, or fight Cell to the death. He’d never meet his own father. But he didn’t seem to miss what he didn’t know. Often Chichi wondered if she would be hurting him more than helping him if she eventually told him about his father when he was old enough to understand what happened. Would he forever ache at the loss of the man who never even knew he existed? Would he grieve for someone he never knew? Or would he simply think of Goku as just a face on the altar in the living room? Perhaps it would be both. He might one day be curious about where he came from and wonder why Gohan got to know their father but he didn’t.

When the boys were pruney from water and brown from sun they climbed from the lake and lazily threw themselves down on the blanket. Goten was perfectly content in his birthday suit while he greedily drank from his sippy cup. What was it about little boys and not wanting to wear clothes? Even Gohan went through that phase until he was about four. As the boys ate their snacks and basked in every cool breeze that tickled past them, Chichi took a moment to watch them. Gohan was starting to stretch out now, his swimsuit didn’t fit as well as it did a few months ago, he’d grown about three inches in just as many months, his hair was longer, his face less round. He was still her little boy but he’d be a teenager in about six months’ time.

Even Goten’s face was starting to change. He’d barely celebrated his first birthday the day before but looking at him now she could see how different he looked compared to about six months ago. He was still quite round and pudgy, but his features were starting to stand out now. While Chichi couldn’t tell who he looked like when he was born, she thought back to her conversation with her friends yesterday. The resemblance really was uncanny. She saw Goku in every little thing that Goten did. When he laughed it was with his whole face, when he set his mind to climbing the bookshelf or petting the wild animals that came into the yard she saw the same fierce determination in his eyes, when Gohan told him not to do something, he had the same fiery need to do it, to accept a challenge.

“Eat your lunch and play some more, boys. We’ll head back to the house around early evening and set up the telescope so we can watch the stars once it gets dark. That sound good?” Gohan’s eyes lit up. The telescope his grandfather got him for his birthday was possibly his most prized possession so she knew this would be a special experience.

Once night fell Chichi and her boys were lying on a blanket in the front yard each taking turns watching the stars through the telescope. Well, Chichi and Gohan were watching the stars. Every time it was Goten’s turn to use it he just pointed it at the house or at them and laughing at how silly they looked so close up. When it was Chichi’s turn to look she began scanning the sky for the moon. She wanted to wait until it was at its highest and brightest before she saw it through the telescope. For the last twelve years she’d been watching her boys stare at the moon. Why did Goku used to watch it through the window whenever they made love? Why did Gohan seek it out whenever he was upset? Even Goten seemed to be drawn to it occasionally; Chichi would wake up some nights to see him standing up in his crib completely still and entranced by its glow. What was so special about it?

When she finally found it in the telescope’s sight she was shocked at what she saw. The moon was full tonight and it was absolutely breathtaking. Chichi couldn’t believe what she was seeing. She moved away from the telescope to look up with her naked eye. Was she really looking at the moon or was it some very close planet? She looked through the scope again and again she was shocked. How had she gone her entire life without paying any mind to this beauty in the sky? She’d relied on it’s glow to light her path and it’s position in the sky to navigate her whole life and yet tonight she felt as if she was truly seeing it for the first time.

“My turn!” Goten whined as he tugged on her shirt trying to pull her out of the way. She relinquished the scope but continued to watch the sky. She felt overcome wish such calm. It was almost euphoric. She hadn’t felt this way in so long. It reminded her of both nights her sons were born, and the night she married Goku. That might have been what it was for her boys then, not just a source of light in the dark, but one of happiness too. 

**Author's Note:**

> The healing process is long but it's going. Chichi's learning how to live without her man and Gohan is learning how to manage his anger and pain. Goten is learning how to be a person. I'm not an older sibling so I'm terribly sorry if I'm not doing Gohan justice as an older brother. However I am the youngest sibling of four so I know that specific flavor of bratty baby that Goten is serving here. Chichi finally notices and understands the moon! I didn't think I'd write about her looking at the moon at all in this series, I had originally intended for it to be something only the boys have in common, but it just felt right this time. 
> 
> please come and say hi over at mexican-goku on tumblr! and don't forget to drop a comment here! I'd love to know if I'm doing anything right in this fandom lol


End file.
